Murkr

Hi everyone, my serpentine belt exploded while i was driving and wrapped around my crankshaft pulley and power steering pulley.

If i take the crankshaft pulley off is it going to mess up the timing?

It's wrapped pretty good, i spent 2 hours trying to pull at it with needle nose pliers, flat head screwdriver, and a razor blade but i can't get it. its so tightly wound.

i have a 12' G37 sedan and was driving around 60mph and decided to gun it. I thought i had sand hitting the bottom of the car but it was the belt being ripped to shreds.

Here's a pic, its hard to see though https://www.screencast.com/t/yMMwVMyV

All the pulleys seem okay. none are wobbly, and they all spin by hand "expect the crankshaft" of course.

do you think this is a job a newbie can do? or should i get it towed to a local shop where they have better tools? I just have the basics.

JSolo

iTrader: (14)

I would try cutting it with an exacto knife. Blade should be narrow enough to fit in between. Getting the crank pulley off is a major job, usually requiring heat.

Is this the original belt?

Murkr

oh geez, so you think it will be far easier to just keep cutting away at the belt then to take the crankshaft pulley off? Honestly i was afraid of cutting away at it. Isn't there some kind of seal that i could damage by doing that? or if i just keep cutting away will i end up getting to metal?

Yes, i believe it was the original belt, im not sure though. car is at 60k miles.

PS: what about the power steering pulley. its wrapped around that too. is that one easy to get off?

JSolo

iTrader: (14)

I don't believe there's any seals immediately on the crank shaft the pulley sits on. Look at this video - , ~12:30.

I'm not sure about the p/s pulley. I think you can still get away with using a thin blade then maybe some thin long nose pliers to remove the belt remnants.

I don't recall seeing too many other threads about belts getting destroyed like this. Once you get things cleaned up and new belt installed, carefully inspect all the pulleys for proper alignment and make sure tensioner is within working range (see marks on the tensioner body and belt replacement DIY).

Murkr

okay thanks for the tips. Yeah my mechanic friend was surprised that i didnt have any damaged pulleys. He says this normally doesnt happen.

One thing that i noticed was when i gunned it and right before it switched gears i would get a slight screech. I always thought it was the clutch or something but it may have been the belt, i dont know. that has been happening since i bought this car 3 years ago though.

I always drive it really hard though. This happened when i gunned it going 60mph

PNW_IPL

iTrader: (5)

scary. Looks like i better get mine changed. No idea if its ever been done.

JSolo

iTrader: (14)

@Murkr is the car an automatic or manual? I recall in an earlier post elsewhere you said you had an automatic.

I'd say be prepared to replace the tension along with the belt. Once stuff is out of the way, it takes maybe 10 min to reinstall the belt. Still, if your tensioner is outside the service limits then this could happen again.

Murkr

okay thanks for the tips. Yeah my mechanic friend was surprised that i didnt have any damaged pulleys. He says this normally doesnt happen.

One thing that i noticed was when i gunned it and right before it switched gears i would get a slight screech. I always thought it was the clutch or something but it may have been the belt, i dont know. that has been happening since i bought this car 3 years ago though.

I always drive it really hard though. This happened when i gunned it going 60mph.

Yes its an automatic, and when i figure out how to get all these pieces out i will install the new belt and make sure the tension is correct